Hamas’s Jabalia Operation Impacts Could Represent a Kill Shot to Netanyahu’s Hopes

Hamas military spokesperson Abu Obaideh on Saturday evening said that Qassam Brigades in a complicated ambush in the camp managed to kill, injure, and capture several Israeli forces.

"We carried out a complex operation in the north of the Gaza Strip by dragging the Zionist forces into one of the tunnels and we were able to engage with the enemy from zero distance," he said. 

He asserted that the resistance fighters will continue the Israeli aggression on all fronts and will publish new details of the operations in another time. 

Since during the nearly eight months of the war Hamas has proven that it provides a more realistic narrative than the propaganda of the Israeli army about the developments on the ground, without a doubt, the Jabalia operation can be considered a turning point in the war and can determine the future of the developments in favor of the resistance. 

In terms of its surprising results, this operation contains important messages that can have significant effects given the current situation of the Israelis and the regional and international atmosphere having formed around the war in Gaza.

Political and psychological impacts of Jabalia operation on the Israeli war record 

The most important effect of the new operation by the resistance fighters in Jabalia should be the blow it deals to the images and promises of the Israeli war cabinet to the Israeli settlers about the prospects of military operation in Gaza. 

Before the war having been struggling with protests for several months, the cabinet of Netanyahu after the big defeat it sustained from Hamas in Operation Al-Aqsa Storm of October 7 went to great lengths to make gains for itself in the eyes of the critics and for internal consumption through an all-out military operation in Gaza. To this end, Netanyahu promised freeing the Israeli prisoners held by Hamas and destroying this resistance movement and occupying Gaza and displacing a major number of its residents. 

However, the course of developments showed that the war direction does not go as the Israeli officials and their Western backers wish, and despite carpet-destruction of Gaza, the Israeli army declined to make any palpable achievement on the ground. Not only did it not free the prisoners, but also as the time went by, Israel sank deeper into war swamp and sustained higher costs. This situation gradually caused a large part of the opposition, in addition to the families of the prisoners, to call for ending the unfruitful operation and going to the negotiating table, something seen by Netanyahu and his cabal in the hardline cabinet as a political suicide and a part to collapse of the government. To deal with this predicament, the Israeli government officials unveiled their last card for pressing the resistance which is Rafah invasion, hoping that they can either force Hamas to negotiate or make a gain in prisoner case.

Given all these, Jabalia operation showed that Rafah attack was yet another mistake in a series of strategic mistakes and confusions of Tel Aviv in managing the war. 

While the war cabinet of the regime has not managed to untie the tangled case of prisoners for eight months, now by giving more prisoners to Hamas in the battle, it will add to its troubles and sharpen the criticism directed to itself. Last night, opposition leader Yair Lapid once again attacked Netanyahu, saying that the cabinet should make a decision on Sunday and it is to immediately make a prisoner swap deal. 

"Our children are dying every day and we must not miss another chance to bring them back home," he said. 

Also, ex-PM Ehud Olmert on Sunday called for end of stalemate of war, saying the army has no chance for full victory in war and ultimate destruction of Hamas, and the government should negotiate a prisoner deal. 

The new round of attacks by critics on Netanyahu and his allies comes at a time when last week the war cabinet's foreign minister Benny Gantz gave a twenty-day ultimatum and threatened to withdraw from the cabinet and let it collapse if the negotiations for the release of the prisoners do not begin. 

In such politically complicated situation, Hamas certainly with employing psychological warfare will try to build pressure on Netanyahu’s cabinet through gradual release of news of capturing new Israeli prisoners. Actually, the movement's psychological warfare has already begun. Qassam Brigades released images of Hedar Goldin, Shaol Arven, Hesham al-Sayed, and Abraham Mangesto, the Israeli prisoners held by Hamas for last 10 years, saying: "They have been captives for 10 years. Have the government and their people forgotten them?" 

Qassam raised questions about the fate of the prisoners who have been in captivity since October 7 and remain in captivity due to the inaction of their government, and reminded the Israelis that time is running out and the occupation government is lying to its people about the prisoners.

Qassam has also shocked the occupiers by publishing a footage of Assaf Hamami, the commander of the Southern Brigade in the army's Gaza Division. The occupying regime had previously said that Hamami was killed on October 7 and his body was taken to the Gaza Strip. A symbolic funeral was also held for him.

 Army loss in Rafah 

With this operation, Hamas proved that not only the Israeli claims about its operational power decline are not true, but also even in areas the Israelis claim to have cleansed, resistance forces carry out successful operations and claims of control over parts of Gaza cannot be true. 

Furthermore, by captivating further Israelis, Qassam Brigades showed that insistence of war cabinet on continuation of war can even allow Hamas to captivate more prisoners and so set heavier conditions for Israel on the negotiating table.